1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and a system for ordering a print of image data via a network, and to a computer-readable recording medium storing a program to cause a computer to execute the print ordering method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Digital photograph service systems for carrying out various kinds of digital photograph services have been known. In such a service, photographs obtained by a user are digitized and stored in an image server or recorded in a CD-R to be provided to the user. Furthermore, images photographed by a user with a digital camera are printed and the user can request additional prints of the images. As one form of such a digital photograph service system, a network photograph service system for receiving an order of a print or the like via a network such as the Internet has also been proposed.
In such a network photograph service system, a user installs viewer software in his/her personal computer which acts as a user terminal so that the user can reproduce image data recorded in a CD-R or obtained by using a digital camera. When the user orders a print or the like, the user generates order information describing the content of an order by using an ordering function built in to the viewer software. The user then sends the order information and image data representing an image or images to be printed from the user terminal to an order reception server via a network such as the Internet. The order reception server sends the image data and the order information to a printer server in a laboratory or in a mini-laboratory installed in a store. The printer server prints the image data and generates an additional print, a picture postcard, an album, and the like, based on the order information. In the case where the printer server and the order reception server are located at the same place, printing is carried out immediately after receiving the image data and the order information.
The print or the like generated in the above manner is delivered to an agency designated by the user at the time of ordering the print or the like. In this manner, the user can pay a printing charge and receive the print or the like at the agency.
The “order information” refers to information such as a processing number for specifying the content of a service (such as generation of an additional print or a postcard), an image number specifying a photograph, a print size, quantity of prints, quality of printing paper (such as glossy or non-glossy), thickness of the printing paper, the content of processing, and trimming specification, for example. The order information may further include information regarding a name, an address, a zip code and a phone number of the user.
In such a network photograph service system described above, the user needs to specify the agency for receiving the print or the like when the user orders the print or the like. There are several methods for the user to designate the agency: (1) selecting the desired agency from a list of agencies displayed on the user terminal; (2) selecting area information such as a prefecture by using the user terminal and then selecting the desired agency from a list of agencies in the selected area; (3) displaying a store closest to the user on the user terminal as the agency based on the zip code; and (4) directly inputting a name of the agency from the user terminal, for example.
However, an operation for selecting the agency is troublesome for the user. Especially, in the case where the user has already decided which agency to use, selection of the agency according to the methods (1) to (4) described above is annoying for the user. Furthermore, if the agency is a DPE store, it is difficult for the DPE store to induce the user to designate the store according to the methods (1) to (4), although the DPE store wishes the user to do so.